Heating device and heating method

Abstract

To provide a multistage heating apparatus in which heat radiation members are arranged between objects to be heated, which facilitates the maintenance of the heat radiation members and inner walls without damaging temperature uniformity.SOLUTION: Provided is a multistage heating apparatus in which plural heating wall bodies and metallic plural heat radiation members which are arranged in a shelf shape in an opposite region of the plural heating wall bodies to conduct heat from the heating wall bodies define vertically arranged plural storage spaces for respectively storing the object to be heated. A space between the vertically adjacent storage spaces is separated by the heat radiation members to block air circulation, and the respective heat radiation members are placed on a pair of heat radiation member support parts provided at opposing wall faces of the heating wall bodies, are not fixed in either the vertical or horizontal direction and can be pulled forward.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a heating device and a heating method. [Background technology]

[0002] In the manufacturing process of liquid crystal display panels, etc., A heating and drying process is carried out to remove moisture after cleaning and to remove solvents and other substances contained in the components of the chemical solution applied to the substrate. A multi-stage heating device is used to carry out this heating and drying process on multiple large substrates.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a clean oven using a heated gas circulation system. This device is equipped with heating walls that are erected facing each other and a number of heat radiating members arranged like shelves between them and heated by conductive heat from the heating walls. Each space between these heat radiating members is used as a storage space to store the glass substrate, which is the object to be heated, and the heat treatment is performed by the radiant heat from the upper and lower heat radiating members. Since each storage space is partitioned, the temperature distribution is excellent and there is no heat accumulation phenomenon in the upper space caused by the rise of hot air. In addition, since heated air is not blown, clean heat treatment is realized.

[0004] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 discloses a heating device in which, in the heating device of Patent Document 1, a pair of heat transfer walls are provided in close contact with the inside of a pair of heating walls, and a heat radiating member is arranged in a shelf-like shape between the heat transfer walls, thereby improving temperature uniformity.

[0005] In Patent Document 3, in order to solve the problem that the temperature of the upper storage space is still higher than that of the lower storage space even with the compartment structure of Patent Document 1, the spacing between electric heaters in the heating wall is made larger at the upper part of the heating wall than at the lower part, thereby increasing the amount of heat generated at the lower part compared to the upper part. Also, a heat insulating section is provided midway through the heating wall to prevent heat from being conducted upward. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-200077 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2005-352306 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2005-055152 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] However, in the heating and drying process for liquid crystal substrates, etc., chemical substances that volatilize from the heated substrate (heated object) may adhere to the walls and partitions (heat radiation members) of the multi-stage heating device, and in such cases, it is necessary to perform periodic maintenance to remove these deposits. In a multi-stage heating device, the storage space for each heated object is a narrow, plate-like space in the vertical direction, making this removal work difficult. To facilitate this removal work, it is conceivable to make the heat radiating member removable from the heating wall. However, in a removable structure, i.e., in a structure in which the heat radiating member is not firmly fixed to the heating wall, the heat conduction from the heating wall is reduced, impairing the temperature uniformity of the heat radiating member, and as a result, there is a concern that the temperature uniformity of the plate-shaped heated object may be impaired due to uneven radiated heat.

[0008] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a multi-stage heating device in which a heat radiating member is arranged between objects to be heated, which can facilitate maintenance of the heat radiating member and inner walls without compromising the uniformity of the heating temperature. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] As a result of the inventors' investigation, it was found that the heat radiation member is mainly heated through air, and that the heating by thermal conduction from the heating wall is relatively small. It was also found that if the heat radiation member is structured to block the air flow between adjacent storage spaces, the temperature uniformity of the air in each storage space is high. This is thought to be because the air flow in each storage space caused by the rise of hot air in the heating device is suppressed. Therefore, with such a structure, the temperature uniformity of the air in the storage space is high, so it was found that the temperature uniformity of the heat radiation member can be maintained even if the connection of the heat radiation member to the heating wall is loosened to the extent that it can be manually slid, and the present invention was obtained.

[0010] The heating device of the present invention includes a plurality of heating walls arranged vertically opposite each other at a distance in the left-right direction; A plurality of heat generating means provided on each of the plurality of heating walls; A plurality of metal heat radiation members arranged in a shelf-like manner at a distance in the vertical direction in the opposing regions of the plurality of heating walls to conduct heat from the heating walls; Equipped with The plurality of heating walls and the plurality of heat radiating members define a plurality of storage spaces arranged in the vertical direction for respectively accommodating plate-shaped objects to be heated, The vertically adjacent storage spaces are isolated by the heat radiation member to block air flow therebetween, The multiple heat radiating members are characterized in that their both side ends are placed on a pair of heat radiating member support parts provided at corresponding positions on the opposing wall surfaces of the multiple heating walls, are not fixed in either the vertical or horizontal directions, and are arranged so that they can be pulled out forward. With this configuration, in a multi-stage heating device in which a heat radiating member is arranged between the substrates to be heated, the heat radiating member is designed to block the flow of air between adjacent storage spaces, so that a heating device can be provided that can facilitate maintenance of the heat radiating member and inner wall without compromising the uniformity of the heating temperature, even if the connection of the heat radiating member to the heating wall is loosened to the extent that it can be manually slid.

[0011] The heat radiation member support portion may be a groove portion having an approximately U-shaped cross section provided along the entire horizontal length of the opposing wall surface of the heating wall, and the underside of the side end portion of the heat radiation member may be placed on the upward surface of the groove portion.

[0012] The opposing heating walls may be provided at corresponding positions on the wall surfaces facing the storage space, and each of the heating walls may have a support portion for supporting the heated object on which the lower surfaces of both ends of the heated object are placed. With this configuration, the heated object can be held at a uniform interval on the heat radiating member, and the heated object is heated uniformly within the surface by radiant heat.

[0013] A configuration is preferably adopted in which the heat radiating member and the heated member have approximately the same shapes and dimensions, and the heat radiating member support part and the heated object support part have approximately the same shapes and dimensions. This configuration makes it easier to carry the heat radiating member in and out using a transport device for the object to be heated, further improving maintainability.

[0014] The storage space may have openings on the front and rear sides defined by the heating wall and the heat radiating member, the opening on the rear side being blocked by a blocking member, and the opening on the front side being configured to be opened and closed by a door, so that the heated object and the heat radiating member can be brought in and taken out when the door is in an open state.

[0015] At least one temperature sensor provided on each of the plurality of heating walls; The heating wall may be configured to include a temperature control means for independently controlling the heat generation amount of each of a plurality of heat generation means provided on each of the plurality of heating walls so that the detected temperature of at least one temperature sensor provided on each of the plurality of heating walls follows a target temperature. This configuration makes it possible to correct the temperature non-uniformity between the heating walls, thereby improving the uniformity of the heat treatment.

[0016] The heating system of the present invention comprises any one of the heating devices described above, 1. A heating system, further comprising a chamber for housing the heating device, The chamber is characterized by having a ventilation mechanism for ventilating the inside of the chamber through an intake port at the bottom for taking in air and an exhaust port at the ceiling for discharging air.

[0017] A heating method of the present invention is characterized in that an object to be heated is heated using any one of the heating devices or the heating system described above. Effect of the Invention

[0018] According to the present invention, in a multi-stage heating device in which a heat radiating member is arranged between the substrates to be heated, the heat radiating member is designed to block the flow of air between adjacent storage spaces, so that a heating device can be provided in which the connection of the heat radiating member to the heating wall can be loosened to the extent that it can be manually slid, without compromising the uniformity of the heating temperature, and maintenance of the heat radiating member and inner wall can be facilitated. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view showing a heating device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a right side view of the heating device shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an external view showing a heater. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the arrangement of a heater in a heating wall. [Diagram 5] 4 is an enlarged view of a heat radiation member support portion and a heated object support portion. FIG. [Figure 6] 11 is a conceptual perspective view showing a state in which the heat radiating member and the object to be heated are pulled out. FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the air flow in an example of an air conditioning chamber of a heating device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] Hereinafter, a heating device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1 to Fig. 7. As shown in Fig. 1, the heating device 100 includes a plurality of heating walls 10 (10A to 10C) arranged facing each other at a distance, a plurality of coil heaters 11 serving as heat generating means provided on the heating walls 10, a plurality of heat radiating members 12 arranged in a shelf-like manner at a distance in the vertical direction (A1-A2 direction) in the facing region of the plurality of heating walls 10, and a storage space 14 for an object to be heated 13 provided between the heat radiating members 12 adjacent to each other in the vertical direction.

[0021] The upper and lower ends of the heating wall 10 are connected by a top plate 16 and a bottom plate 17, respectively, and the lower surface of the bottom plate 17 is supported by a stand unit 30.

[0022] The heating wall 10 is made of stainless steel and is a structural member forming both side and central partition walls of the box-shaped heating device 100, and is also a member that serves as a heat source for the heating device 100. In this embodiment, it consists of three walls: a left heating wall 10A, a central heating wall 10B, and a right heating wall 10C. Each heating wall 10 has a plurality of through holes 24 opened horizontally from the front side to the back side, and a coil heater 11 is removably inserted into each of these through holes 24.

[0023] The coil heater 11, as shown in detail in Fig. 3, has a structure in which a heating wire 11w wound in a coil shape is housed inside a metal tube (sheath) 11s. Although shown simply in Fig. 3, the heating wire 11w wound in a coil shape travels back and forth from the right end to the left end, with two lead wires extending from the right end. The two travelling heating wires 11w and the heating wire 11w and the metal tube 11s are insulated from each other by an insulating layer made of solidified powdered magnesium oxide.

[0024] As shown in Fig. 4, in each heating wall 10, a plurality of through holes 24 extending horizontally from the front side are provided, and coil heaters 11 are inserted into the through holes. The wiring of each coil heater 11 extends from the rear side of the heating device 100. The vertical spacing of the through holes 24 is set narrower at the bottom and wider at the top, increasing the arrangement density of the coil heaters 11 at the bottom where the temperature tends to be lower. However, the arrangement of the coil heaters 11 is not limited to this, and can be set appropriately so that the temperature distribution within the heating wall 10 surface is uniform.

[0025] 1, a plurality of through holes 25 are formed in each heating wall 10 in the horizontal direction from the front side, and temperature sensors 15 are inserted into the through holes 25. The heat generation amount of each of the coil heaters 11 provided in each heating wall 10 is independently controlled by a temperature control means (not shown) so that the detected temperature of the temperature sensor 15 follows the target temperature.

[0026] The heat radiating members 12 are arranged like shelves at a distance in the vertical direction in the area facing the heating wall 10, are heated by the heat from the heating wall 10, and radiate the heat toward the heated object 13. Each heat radiating member 12 is made of an aluminum plate with a black-plated surface, and has excellent heat radiation function.

[0027] Both side ends of each heat radiating member 12 are placed on a pair of heat radiating member supports 10s provided at corresponding positions on the opposing wall surfaces of the heating walls 10, and the heat radiating members 12 are not fixed in either the vertical or horizontal directions and are provided so as to be able to be pulled out forward. A plurality of heat radiating member supports 10s are provided at regular intervals in the vertical direction, whereby the plurality of heat radiating members 12 are arranged like a shelf. In this embodiment, the heat radiation member support portion 10s is a groove portion with an approximately U-shaped cross section provided along the entire horizontal length (B1-B2 direction) of the opposing wall surface of the heating wall 10, as shown enlarged in Figure 5, and the lower surface of the side end portion of the heat radiation member 12 is placed on the upward surface of the groove portion (10s). With this configuration, as shown in FIG. 6, the heat radiating member 12 can be inserted or pulled out by sliding it manually or the like, facilitating maintenance of the heat radiating member 12 and the wall surface of the heating wall body 10. However, the heat radiation member support portion 10s is not limited to a groove portion having an approximately U-shaped cross section, but may have any structure that allows both side ends of the heat radiation member 12 to be placed on it and that allows it to be slid forward and pulled out, for example, it may have a structure that only has a placement surface that is open at the top.

[0028] At corresponding positions on the opposing wall surfaces of the heating wall 10 and at vertical positions alternating with the heat radiation member support parts 10s, heated object support parts 10t are provided on which the undersides of both side ends of the heated object 13 are placed. In this embodiment, the support portion 10t for the object to be heated is a groove portion with a substantially U-shaped cross section provided on the opposing wall surface of the heating wall body 10 over the entire length in the horizontal direction (B1-B2 direction), as shown in an enlarged view in Fig. 5, and the lower surface of the side end portion of the heat radiating member is placed on the upward surface of the groove portion. Using a predetermined conveying device, the object to be heated 13 can be conveyed so that both left and right ends of the object to be heated enter the grooves (10t) as shown in Fig. 6, and then placed on the upward support surface.

[0029] In this embodiment, the heat radiating member 12 and the object to be heated 13 have substantially the same shape and size, and the heat radiating member support part 10s and the object to be heated support part 10t have substantially the same shape and size. This configuration makes it easier to carry in and out the heat radiating member 12 using a transport device for the object to be heated 13, further improving maintainability. However, the shapes and dimensions of the heat radiating member 12 and the object to be heated 13 may be different, and the shapes and dimensions of the heat radiating member support part 10s and the object to be heated support part 10t may also be different.

[0030] Each storage space 14 is a space defined by the heating walls 10 on both sides and the upper and lower heat radiation members 12, and stores one object 13 to be heated, and heats the object 13 with radiant heat from the upper and lower heat radiation members 12. An opening / closing door (not shown) is provided on the front surface 14a (see FIG. 2) of each storage space 14, and this opening / closing door is opened when the object 13 is carried in and out, and is closed when the object is heated. Specifically, an opening for carrying in and out the object 13 is provided at a position corresponding to each storage space 14 on the front panel (not shown) of the entire device, and the opening / closing door is provided at each opening. Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the back surface 14b side of each storage space 14 is closed by the rear wall member 26. However, even when the opening / closing door is closed, the inside of the storage space 14 is not completely sealed, and the heated and expanded air can escape.

[0031] The spaces between the top two heat radiating members 12 and between the bottom two heat radiating members 12 are empty spaces into which no object to be heated 13 is introduced, and are insulating spaces 20T, 20B for forming an insulating layer of air.

[0032] The stand unit 30 is placed on the floor surface on which the heating device 100 is installed, and is equipped with a bottom plate 17 and the heating device main body thereon. It is equipped with a heat insulating function to prevent the heat of the heating device 100 from being transmitted to the floor surface, and an anti-vibration function to prevent the vibration of the floor surface from being transmitted to the heating device main body.

[0033] The heating device 100 main body including the stand unit 30 may be placed in a chamber 200 as shown in Fig. 7 in order to prevent the intrusion of particles from the outside and to prevent exhaust heat from affecting other devices in the installation location such as a clean room. In this chamber 200, a blower fan 230 provided at an exhaust port 220 on the ceiling of the chamber exhausts the hot exhaust air from the heating device 100 inside the chamber 200, and outside air is introduced into the chamber 200 through an intake port 210 at the lower left, which creates a negative pressure inside the chamber 200. A HEPA filter (not shown) is provided inside the intake port 210 to prevent the intrusion of particles from the outside.

[0034] Next, the operation of the heating device 100 of the present invention configured as above will be described with reference to FIGS. When the heating device 100 is used, first, electricity is started to be applied to the coil heater 11, and the heating wall 10 is heated until the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 15 reaches a predetermined temperature. Next, the opening and closing doors (not shown) on the front surface 14a of each storage space 14 are opened, and each object to be heated is carried into each storage space 14 using a predetermined conveying device, and then the opening and closing doors are closed.

[0035] In each storage space 14, the object 13 to be heated is heated by radiant heat from the left and right heating walls 10 and by radiant heat from the upper and lower heat radiating members 12 which generate heat by thermal conduction from these heating walls 10. The temperature uniformity of the heating wall 10 within each storage space 14 and between storage spaces 14 is ensured by optimal placement of the coil heaters 11 and independent heat generation control of the coil heaters 11 located in each portion based on the detected temperatures of each temperature sensor 15.

[0036] In addition, since the heating device 100 is structured such that the heat radiating member 12 blocks the air flow between adjacent storage spaces 14 as described above, it is believed that air flow caused by rising hot air is unlikely to occur. Therefore, the air temperature in each storage space 14 is highly uniform, and the temperature uniformity of the heat radiating member 12 is maintained even if the connection of the heat radiating member 12 to the heating wall 10 is loosened to the extent that it can be manually slid. The heated object 13 is heated uniformly by the heat radiation from this heat radiating member 12.

[0037] Next, the maintenance work for the heating device 100 of the present invention configured as above will be described with reference to FIGS. All objects to be heated 13 are removed while the heating device 100 is in operation, and after the operation is finished and the temperature inside the device has sufficiently dropped, the front panel (not shown) is removed to open the front of the device. This places the heating device 100 in the state shown in Figures 1 and 6. Note that instead of removing the front panel, the front panel may be slid or hinged to open the entire front side, in which case maintainability can be further improved.

[0038] Next, each heat radiating member 12 is removed manually or by using, for example, a transport device for the heated object 13. At this time, since each heat radiating member is not fixed with bolts or the like but is simply placed on the support surface of the heat radiating member support part 10s, the work can be performed quickly without the trouble of releasing the fixation. Each heat radiating member 12 is immersed in a cleaning bath or wiped with cleaning paper soaked in a solvent to remove chemicals adhering to the surface of the heat radiating member 12 . Meanwhile, the inside of the heating device 100 from which the heat radiation member 12 has been removed, i.e., the surface of each heating wall 10 and the surface of the rear wall member 26 on the rear side, are wiped with cleaning paper soaked in a solvent to remove any adhering chemical substances.

[0039] After cleaning, each heat radiating member is inserted into the heat radiating member support part 10s manually or by using, for example, a transport device for the heated object 13. At this time, each heat radiating member is simply placed on the support surface of the heat radiating member support part 10s, so there is no need to fix it with bolts or the like, and the work can be done quickly. Finally, the front panel is reinstalled to complete the maintenance work.

[0040] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to such specific examples, and various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims. For example, an air supply path may be provided in the heating device 100 to introduce gas such as an inert gas for preventing oxidation of the surface of the object 13 to be heated or a gas for causing a specific chemical reaction with the surface of the object 13 into the accommodation space 14 from the rear side. However, it is preferable to adjust the flow rate of this gas so that it becomes a very weak laminar flow that does not stir up particles and does not impair the temperature uniformity of the heat radiating member 12.

[0041] Furthermore, the surface treatment of the heat radiating member 12 is not limited to black plating, and any surface treatment capable of suppressing the dissipation of radiant heat, such as a matte surface treatment, may also be used. [Industrial Applicability]

[0042] The heating device according to the present invention can be widely used in industrial fields in which heat treatment is performed on various plate-like members such as glass substrates, semiconductor lead frames, other metal plates, and synthetic resin plates. [Explanation of symbols]

[0043] 10,10A~10C heating wall 10s Heat radiation member support 10t Heated object support part 11 Coil heater 11s Metal tube (sheath) 11w heating wire 12 Heat radiation components 13 Heated object 14 Storage Space 14a front 14b Back 15 Temperature Sensor 16 Tabletop 17 Bottom plate 20T, 20B Insulated space 24 Through hole 25 Through hole 26 Back wall member 30 Mounting unit 100 Heating device 200 Chamber 210 Air Intake 220 Exhaust port 230 Blower fan

Claims

1. A plurality of heating walls arranged vertically opposite each other at a distance in the left-right direction; A plurality of heat generating means provided on each of the plurality of heating walls; A plurality of metal heat radiation members arranged in a shelf-like manner at a distance in the vertical direction in the opposing regions of the plurality of heating walls to conduct heat from the heating walls; Equipped with The plurality of heating walls and the plurality of heat radiating members define a plurality of storage spaces arranged in the vertical direction for respectively accommodating flat-plate-shaped objects to be heated. The vertically adjacent storage spaces are isolated by the heat radiation member to block air flow therebetween, The heating device is characterized in that the multiple heat radiating members are placed on a pair of heat radiating member support parts whose both side ends are provided at corresponding positions on the opposing wall surfaces of the multiple heating walls, are not fixed in either the vertical or horizontal directions, and are arranged so that they can be pulled out forward.

2. The heating device described in claim 1, wherein the heat radiation member support portion is a groove portion having an approximately U-shaped cross section provided on the opposing wall surface of the heating wall body, and the lower surface of the side end portion of the heat radiation member is placed on the upward surface of the groove portion.

3. The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the opposing heating walls are provided at corresponding positions on each wall surface facing the storage space, and each of the opposing heating walls has a heated object support portion on which the undersides of both side ends of the heated object are placed.

4. The heating device according to claim 3 , wherein the heat radiating member and the object to be heated have substantially the same shapes and dimensions, and the heat radiating member support part and the object support part have substantially the same shapes and dimensions.

5. The heating device described in claim 3, wherein the storage space has openings on the front and rear sides defined by the heating wall and the heat radiating member, the opening on the rear side is blocked by a blocking member, and the opening on the front side is configured to be opened and closed by a door, so that the heated object and the heat radiating member can be transported in and out when the door is in an open state.

6. At least one temperature sensor provided on each of the plurality of heating walls; 2. The heating device according to claim 1, further comprising: a temperature control means for independently controlling the heat generation amount of each of a plurality of heat generation means provided on each of the plurality of heating walls so that the detected temperature of at least one temperature sensor provided on each of the plurality of heating walls follows a target temperature.

7. A heating device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, 1. A heating system, further comprising a chamber for housing the heating device, The heating system, wherein the chamber has a ventilation mechanism for ventilating the chamber through an intake port at the bottom for taking in atmospheric air and an exhaust port at the ceiling for discharging atmospheric air.

8. A heating method, comprising heating an object by using the heating device according to claim 1.

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